Three years after the first case of covid-19 in Peru, have we returned to normality?

On the morning of March 6, 2020, the Peru confirmed that the covid-19 pandemic had crossed its borders. The virus that at first seemed to be a problem for China was spreading everywhere Europe, North America to finally reach our territory in the body of a young man of 25 years. Since then, a series of measures have been implemented that have completely changed the lives of all citizens of the world.

Entire families spent weeks locked up in their homes, everyone had to wear masks and bathe in alcohol to avoid the virus who was there to impact his system. With the airports shut down, businesses going bankrupt and the unstoppable rise of infected and deceased, only one question kept recurring in people’s minds: when will we return to normality? Today we can say that will never happen.

Three years after the first case of covid-19, we can assure that citizens are a little more aware of the impact that a pandemic can cause, but there is no confirmation that the authorities have learned to prepare for the appearance of future virus. Since March 2020 there have been eleven changes of ministers, who have been the protagonists of scandals such as Pilar Mazzetti for Vacunagate.

The fact that students have returned to schools and universities, that the use of masks has become voluntary, that capacity has returned to 100% and that people are moving freely in the streets, does not mean that new infections and deceased infections are recorded daily. . As of March 4, the Minsa Situation Room reported that 219,513 citizens had died from the coronavirus, while confirmed cases stood at 4,486,934.

The arrival of covid-19 in Peru has brought with it a sea of ​​uncertainty about how to respond to this new threat. On August 1, 2020, the first wave reached its highest peak with 12,246 cases, added to the lack of intensive care beds and oxygen which puts patients’ lives at risk. The second wave proved equally impressive with its predecessor, accounting for 10,216 cases of infection at its most critical moment.

The arrival of the vaccine in early 2021 made the third wave less deadly, although at its most critical there were 61,832 Peruvians infected. It was not until mid-February that the director general of the National Center for Epidemiology, Prevention and Disease Control, César Munayco, announced the end of the fifth wave, but insisted that citizens respect their vaccination schedule.

As of March 5, the Ministry of Health has registered the application of 87,980,693 doses. Just over 21 million correspond to the third dose, a phase of vaccination which, although of great importance, has received less attention from the public. Thus, only 74.27% of the target population has the said application. Among the members of the vulnerable population, 81.44% have their third dose, according to the Minsa.

The case of the bivalent vaccine is more worrying. So far, only 8.14% of people eligible to receive it have come to their vaccination center. In the case of children under the age of eleven, few have even been shown to have the first dose. Regions like Moquegua, Tacna and Ucayali barely reach 10% of vaccines in the population aged 6 to 11 months.